


Partnership

by KibaSin



Series: Past Time [42]
Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale, Naruto
Genre: F/M, Mild Language, Minor Violence, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-20
Updated: 2013-07-20
Packaged: 2017-12-20 19:04:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/890756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KibaSin/pseuds/KibaSin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Itachi's gained a new partner who's very determined to bring in Kyuubi. Except one thing, his new partner is a girl.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Partnership

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any material belonging to the creators of Inuyasha or Naruto.

* * *

"Oh, you should have seen her, Tsunade-baa-chan!"

"Naruto!" Sakura growled, bopping her old teammate on the head. "She was trying to kill you in order to take you to their hideout to extract Kyuubi!"

"So?" Naruto asked, looking back at the annoyed Hokage. "She was wicked awesome, especially her jutsu, and she showed a… um… what would you call it?"

"She showed a fondness for her partner," Sai added, his face blank.

Tsunade groaned, wondering whom they were talking about now. She'd wanted a report on their mission, not a  _long_  detailed story about a person who tried to kill them. She didn't even know whom they were talking about in the first place, only Naruto's words of "she was wicked awesome". First thing she wished to know: who was she? Second thing: what were they talking about? Third thing: when were they going to leave—or, at least, when was Kakashi going to come back for them?

"Yeah, that's it," Naruto smiled. "A fondness for her partner."

Rolling her eyes, and lifting her head a bit more off her desk, Tsunade asked, "Who, exactly, was  _her_  partner? Though, I'm still not exactly sure who this  _her_  is."

The teens cast glances between themselves; or at least Naruto and Sakura did, while Sai merely continued to stare blankly at the Hokage. Then, Sakura coughed a bit to get the Hokage's full attention, and said, "Um, Uchiha Itachi's partner, Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes, and sat up completely. "Uchiha Itachi?" she asked, her tone very serious. Seeing them nod, she asked, "Tell me, are we speaking of the Uchiha Itachi currently apart of the Organization called Akatsuki, or is there another Uchiha Itachi I need to be aware of?"

Sakura sighed, wanting to hit herself.

Sai blinked, wanting to know how much she had actually been paying attention.

Naruto scowled, nearly yelling, "Of course we're talking about  _the_  Uchiha Itachi from Akatsuki! What did you think we were talking about?"

"Nevermind that," Tsunade continued. "I was under the impression that Hoshigaki Kisame was Uchiha Itachi's partner. Am I wrong?"

"Well," Sakura said, "he was Itachi's partner."

" _Was_?" Tsunade asked.

Naruto nodded, his mood quickly changing. "Yeah. I'm not sure what happened to the shark-guy, but when I asked Itachi wouldn't tell me. His partner simply stated that Kisame was no longer apart of Akatsuki and she had taken his place."

"Yes," Sakura agreed. "She even wore his ring on her left ring finger, as he did."

"His ring?" Tsunade muttered to herself. "Kisame must be dead then. Now tell me, I would like to know whether or not this woman stated her name when you crossed paths with them."

"Yes," Sai said, drawing the attention to himself. "Once."

Tsunade frowned, "Well, what was it?"

"Higurashi," Sai replied, blinking. "Higurashi Kagome."

Tsunade's eyes darkened a bit, recognizing the name. "That's interesting."

"What is, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura asked.

"The Higurashi Clan members have always thought themselves to be pure of heart, in a sense. Each member that is born has a secret task that they must perform in order to prove that they are pure. If they cannot perform the task then they are cast off around the age of nine, unable to hold the Higurashi name, though they're not shunned from the village. They are polite, but have a legendary temper, and usually try to find peaceful ways of going about everything they do." Tsunade paused, "However, that does not mean that they do not have flaws.

"For a Higurashi to cut off all ties to their clan, for whatever reason, is looked down upon once they have completed the task I spoke of." She paused again, "It is very strange to hear that one has joined Akatsuki."

"Why is it so strange, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura asked, allowing her lips to turn down into a frown. Seeing her sensei with such a serious look in her eye was odd, even for her, especially with this kind of subject. True, she was very serious when it came to Akatsuki, but to be this serious about a clan? She'd never seen this from Tsunade; never.

"A Higurashi, whether male or female, would consider it disgraceful if a member of their clan broke all ties with them," Tsunade said, tapping her fingers on her desk. "They consider the one who broke the ties  _evil_ , and even the person who did it normally believes such. Most commit some type of suicide or go into a losing battle in order to die, instead of allowing themselves and others to believe them  _evil_. However, for her to have joined Akatsuki means that she does not care that she is considered  _evil_ , a disgrace to her family name, and will most likely do everything in her power to stay alive. She still carries her surname, as well, which means the Higurashi Clan will be trying to capture her, whether to kill her or expel the evil from her soul. She does not seem to care about that, either, which makes the situation all the more mysterious."

"Why is it you know so much about this clan, Tsunade-baa-chan?" Naruto asked curiously.

Tsunade twitched at the title Naruto gave her, but decided to ignore it this  _one_  time. "Tell me," Tsunade asked, "did she wear a headband by any chance? Was there one, at least, on her person where you could easily identify it?"

They glanced between themselves once more, even Sai tilting his head slightly to look at the others. Then, at last, Sai shook his head slightly to answer 'no'. The others followed suit, signaling that they too had not seen one.

"Surely she was carrying it," Tsunade frowned, "if she stated her surname." She frowned a bit deeper, her eyes narrowing in thought, before she sighed. "I do not know why she was not wearing one. Perhaps she has hidden it on her person, though I do not know why, when the other members wear theirs, as if with pride…"

"Wait, wait," Naruto brought up his hands, his eyes brightening. "I remember now! She did have one!"

"Really?" Sakura asked, turning her head toward him. "Where?"

"Right here," Naruto smiled, pointing to his waist. "I saw it when she came at me and her cloak opened up. I didn't see the symbol on it, but I did see the strange markings she'd carved into the corner, along with the slash through the middle. I think, though, that she was writing something there before she stopped, since it didn't look completed."

Sakura shook her head, unable to comprehend how Naruto had seen such a thing when the woman had been rushing at him so quickly. Especially when he should have been paying attention to the weapon she'd drawn, or maybe the ninjutsu she'd sent at him. She was amazed that he'd managed to evade the water, or the steel string that came flying out afterward, when he'd been looking at her. A small vein nearly popped out of Sakura's skull when she realized something, and hit Naruto again.

"Ow! What was that for?" Naruto whined.

"You're not supposed to be checking out your opponent, you idiot!" Sakura yelled.

Sai blinked, "She was rather pleasant looking. Unlike you, hag."

Sakura gave a cry of frustration, and turned to Sai. Naruto had been trying to help him make friends, yet still he insisted on calling her that name. She was going to strangle him!

"As amusing as this is," Tsunade said, breaking the fight up almost instantly with her voice, "the symbol that should have been on her headband should have looked like this." She pushed forward a piece of paper with a roughly drawn symbol—not the best she'd ever done, but good enough for them to recognize.

"Amegakure?" Sakura blinked, tilting her head slightly as she approached the desk. "How do you know anything about that village, Tsunade-sama? Or, rather, how do you know so much about a clan within it?"

"Not important," Tsunade said, her eyes sharp.

"Huh?" Naruto blinked at the piece of paper a couple of times. "Where is this village even located?"

Tsunade sighed, and muttered to herself for a second. "That's not important, Naruto. Just know that she was from Amegakure, which makes her a specialist in water jutsus, and most likely a few others things that she's picked up over the years. Especially if she's become apart of Akatsuki."

"Well duh, I already knew that," Naruto snorted. "She threw enough of them at me while that stupid Itachi simply stood there. And those weird, but awesome pieces of string that she used."

Tsunade was confused, "String?"

"Yes, it looked like steel," Sakura said. "It seemed to have a mind of its own, and it stole our chakra the way that Kisame's sword would have. If Kakashi-sensei and Yamato hadn't shown up…" she gulped, "I don't think we would have made it out alive." She stopped for a moment, and then stuck out her finger, "She controlled the string with a small amount of her own chakra, yet it moved like Gaara's sand, while she sent out water and wind based jutsus at us, or fought us using her taijutsu."

Naruto nodded in agreement, "Yeah! Even cooler, it came out of nowhere!"

"It came out of the ground, Naruto," Sakura grumbled.

"I see," Tsunade said. "We'll need to be more careful then. We don't know much about this new member, so we don't want to go blindly into battle with her. So," she scowled, "the next time you even catch a glimpse of her and Itachi, run."

Sai's eyes narrowed in response, while Sakura and Naruto stared at the Godaime Hokage with wide eyes. It was obvious that she knew something that they didn't, she knew something important, something that might save their lives, yet she wouldn't tell them. They wondered what it was, but they knew better than to go against the Hokage's word.

"Now," Tsunade scowled a bit deeper, "get out of my office."

* * *

The wind shifted, her silent companion turning his head toward the shinobi that walked out of the trees. A boy around the age of fourteen led them, a deep scowl on his face as he shivered a little, but he managed to stand firm. A small smirk formed on the face of the female, which made the boy scowl a little more. She turned her head toward her companion, and nodded her head, saying, "You may leave. There is no need for both of us to stray from our task."

 

"I don't think so," the boy snapped. "Our mission is to rid this world of your evil, but the Uchiha is evil from birth; he must die as well. We will hunt you forever, you and the evil you carry on your shoulders."

The woman allowed a smile to cross her face, her hand coming up to push her straw hat over her eyes, the small bells tinkling in response to the move. Though she'd revealed herself to the group of shinobi from Konohagakure, she refused to part with the hat, even after her companion told her to leave it. If she had to, in the end, she would take the bells from it and cast off the hat, but she felt no need for that yet. "Little Souta," she chuckled, "how you've grown. It almost hurts me to see how deeply you've been drawn into the web your clan weaves."

The boy snarled, tears coming to his eyes as he took a step forward. "It would be your clan if you hadn't been so foolish and allowed evil to consume you!"

"As if I would want such a stubborn group of fools to be mine," she sighed, pulling the straw hat over her head and tossing it to the ground. "But," a kunai was revealed, twirling on her fingers, "if you will not allow us to pass without trouble, I will feel no remorse in killing you and your views of the world. After all, what is a world filled with good without evil?"

"A better place to live!" Souta yelled, rushing forward. He almost cried out when he was forced to a sudden stop, the Uchiha male suddenly before him. His eyes widened, watching as his new opponent's eyes closed and opened, and knew what would happen next. Then a scream tore from his throat, his mind easily falling into the world of Tsukiyomi.

"Damn," another hissed, "don't look into his eyes!"

"I'm afraid that won't help you." They each looked up, a few catching the red eyes of the male and falling easily under the spell of the genjutsu he was using. The others barely had a chance, steel strings wrapping around their bodies as they screamed. Then, the woman jumped away from them a small distance, her hand thrust out to her right side, and the strings tightened. Blood splattered onto the ground, their chakra draining into the string as it took their lives.

Souta sunk to the ground, his mind falling back into his body. A small noise echoed from his throat, before he felt a hand grab his collar. He was lifted into the air, and he tried to glare at the woman holding him, but he was unable to control his body yet. A small trail of drool escaped his mouth, though, as his lips lifted into a smirk. "Go on," he whispered furiously, "kill me. Or can't you? Is it that even underneath the evil that's taken over your body, you still care for your baby brother?"

Her eyes narrowed, "No. But you will be a good example for the rest as to why you and those pitiful fools should not attempt to attack us again." She tossed him, allowing him to crumble into the blood of his followers, as another smirk pulled itself onto her lips. "You may consider me evil, Souta, but isn't it said that good always triumphs over evil? Weren't you taught that as I was?"

"Monster," he hissed.

"Tell me, Souta," she demanded. "I have  _triumphed_  over you and your followers; doesn't that make me,  _good_ , and you,  _evil_? Your views are shallow. Try growing up, instead of playing peace maker with the rest of those fools."

"I am pure," Souta spat. "You're evil, Kagome." His eyes slid closed, his body beginning to shut down for rest. "I wonder, how long can you live with that knowledge?" he whispered, before falling into a dreamless sleep.

"So weak," Kagome sighed. "It is almost a shame."

She grabbed the hat she'd tossed away, holding it loosely in her fingers. Then, she turned to her companion, her partner, and nodded slightly toward him. He stared at her, and turned away to continue on their path toward Konohagakure. However, she cast one last glance at the boy who'd fallen so quickly, a frown playing on her lips. "You may consider yourself pure, but you forget that I passed that test as well, little brother. But I must leave you now, I have a Jinchuuriki to catch."

He groaned, almost as if he'd heard her.

* * *

They stood frozen, watching them together, as the woman suddenly leapt behind her male companion, her back directly at his. Someone yelled for them not to look into his eyes, but it was too late, for they were already pulled deeply into the genjutsu they had tried so hard to keep themselves from falling into. Some were lucky, having dealt with the jutsu before and managing to cast their sight down long before the word was given, thus saving themselves from the world of Tsukiyomi.

 

A small frown formed onto her lips as she watched him, noticing the moment that a small shiver went through his body. At that moment she knew that he was unable to hold onto the genjutsu any longer, even with the mastery of his doujutsu. He had used it too many times that day, and she had no doubt that he would have to rely on something other than his eyes for this battle. However, a small amount of concern found itself into her mind, and as she past him, she allowed her hand to brush up against his arm.

"Crap," Naruto mumbled, turning his head up when he noticed that the ones caught in Itachi's genjutsu slumped to the ground unconscious. He noticed that Sakura was standing not far off, but Sai was nowhere to be seen at the moment. He was just happy that Sakura was still standing, having closed her eyes so she didn't look into Itachi's eyes.

"You should be paying more attention to your opponent, Kyuubi," a voice whispered into his ear. Naruto swung around, his eyes widening, when he realized his mistake. He should have never taken his eyes off of the new partner that Itachi had, but there was something strange. When he turned, she wasn't there, even though he could have sworn he'd heard her speaking in his ear. And then he realized his second mistake: allowing her to distract him, though he wasn't sure how she was doing it.

Swinging around, he saw the fire jutsu headed his way at the last moment, and barely managed to evade it. There had been no time to counter it with a water jutsu, and he was lucky to have gotten out of its path without getting himself fried. He was positive that it had come from Itachi, for a moment later the hair on his neck rose, and he once again barely managed to move out of the way as a sea of water came crashing down upon previous his position. However, the water continued to rush into the area, and he noticed instantly that the two Akatsuki members were channeling chakra into their feet in order to stay atop of the roaring waters, while his companions were swallowed in the currents.

"Poor little Kyuubi, lost at sea."

The voice was in his ear again, but he ignored it, swimming to the surface when the water calmed, though it did not recede. Worry for his fellow Konohagakure shinobi filled his mind, but he had to quickly turn his attention to the two Akatsuki members advancing on him. He noticed that Itachi's eyes were onyx in color, the sharingan having faded from their depths, and his female partner, Kagome, was standing close to his side. As he watched them, though, standing on top of the water at last, he couldn't quite process just how quickly they moved, and in unison.

"Naruto!" Sakura yelled from somewhere behind him. "We were told not to engage them in battle! Naruto,  _run_!"

They were suddenly flanking his sides, both of them having moved so quickly that he wouldn't have had time to escape. Kyuubi began to whisper in his ear, as Naruto felt adrenaline begin to pump through his veins. However, Kyuubi's words were drowned out by a roaring wind, and he turned in time to see a large vortex heading at him from Kagome's side. Heat was next, and he turned his head in time to see the fire heading toward him from his other side. Knowing that he wouldn't have time to escape, Naruto stopped the chakra flow to his feet and allowed himself to sink beneath the surface of the water.

Itachi appeared at her side, and she frowned slightly. "He got lucky," Kagome snorted toward her partner. She quickly eyed the flaming tornado just far enough above the surface of the water that it did not suck the sea she'd created into its vortex. However, with a few quick seals she blew outward, the winds lowering closer to the water until finally it began to pull the water into the swirling vortex, smothering the flames, but pulling the boy up into the vortex as well.

"You must not underestimate him," Itachi said emotionlessly, eyeing the female at his side.

"As I am aware," Kagome replied. She caught his eye for a moment, but looked away in order to watch the vortex she'd created. If she got lucky the boy would drown, and then they would only have to haul his lifeless body back to the base. However, she knew that Kyuubi, being the nine-tailed fox, would not be one to die so easily, or be captured without a fight—she was positive it was the same even if he was in a human body. And she wasn't usually lucky at anything other than cards.

"Naruto!" Sakura screamed.

Quite suddenly the water vortex burst apart. Kagome narrowed her eyes, stepping slightly to one side, closer to her partner since he was more familiar with this village than she was. She noticed that the boy, Naruto, was unconscious, most likely on the verge of transforming, and in the arms of an older male with silver hair. The boy was settled onto the ground as the man narrowed his visible eye at them, which caused Kagome to narrow her own eyes a little more, stepping even closer to Itachi until she was directly at his side.

Itachi's own eyes narrowed a bit. "Hatake Kakashi," he addressed the jounin. "Once again you interfere."

Sakura gave a sigh of relief, "Kakashi-sensei."

"Uchiha Itachi," Kakashi said. He turned his eye to the woman dressed in the Akatsuki cloak, and continued, "Higurashi Kagome. I'm afraid that I can't allow you to have Naruto."

"Do you expect to defeat us on your own?" Kagome asked. She doubted that this single shinobi could take on both of them, whether they worked together or separately. However, she shifted her foot slightly, and saw that his eye moved down to the movement. A small smirk formed on her lips.

"No," Kakashi said. "I plan on keeping you occupied until backup arrives."

Her smirk turned into a scowl. Her foot slid outward, as she felt Itachi's cloak brush up against her own. Almost instantly, her seals already completed, steel wire shot out of the ground, her chakra channeling through each thin cord. She watched as Kakashi grabbed Naruto by the collar and jumped away from his spot, and just in time for the wire to hit the ground, easily redirect course, and chase after them. Then she shot out her hand, once again brushing up against her partner, causing the wire to travel at a quicker pace.

Itachi allowed his eyes to flicker over her once more, before turning his attention back toward the evading jounin. The amount of chakra that Kagome used to control the wire was surprising small, so he doubted that Hatake would be able to avoid them forever. He knew that using jutsu against the thin wire was pointless, but he had no doubt in his mind that the jounin's mind would quickly process that they  _should_  work against the steel, and gain quite a surprise once his life was taken. Unless he was aware that the steel wire drained an opponent of chakra, and was quite resistant against most jutsu, he did not stand much of a chance.

The process continued, and Kakashi noticed how the two stood closely together. If he survived he would report his findings to the Hokage, and if he didn't, then hopefully he'd kept them at bay long enough for backup to arrive. However, knowing that he could not continue this process forever, Kakashi began to search for a way to escape. The wire had yet to touch him, though it came close enough to drain small amounts of his chakra, which he had no doubt helped her control the wires, or as Naruto had called it, string. The small amount of chakra draining and carrying Naruto would eventually catch up with him and he would either falter or trip, neither of which he wanted to happen.

Kagome's senses alerted her to the attack a few moments later, and she turned her head as she shoved herself backwards into Itachi. As they hit the ground, though she was surprised he hadn't caught them both from falling, hundreds of cloned shuriken went flying over them. As soon as she hit the ground, she went into another series of hand seals, and then thrust her hand out, more wires swarming out of the ground in front of them, blocking the new swarm of shuriken. She rose to her knees, and saw that Itachi had done the same, his hand now settled onto her shoulder.

Kakashi turned his head, noticing that the wires following him slowed as Kagome's attention was diverted from him. Shifting Naruto, he watched as a boy stepped out of the shadows, a fire in his eyes, and a deep scowl on his lips.

"Kakashi-sensei!"

"Sakura, stay there!" Kakashi ordered, watching as the chuunin stopped instantly, nodding.

Kagome frowned, "Souta."

"I told you,  _sister_ ," Souta spat out. "We will hunt your evil forever. There will be nowhere you can hide from the Higurashi Clan, from  _me_." Tears gathered in his eyes, and split over his cheeks. "I thought about it, though, and I noticed that you are still pure of heart; you're still good. But," he laughed, glancing at Itachi, "you changed because of  _his_  evil. You are evil because you want to be disowned in order to follow the evil that has always been within  _his_  veins. You want to be his partner, at his side, but if he is dead, then there will be no evil for you to attach yourself to, and you will be pure of heart again!"

"Fool," Kagome spat back. "You may be my brother, but it is clear to me now that you truly are incompetent. You will never understand what I am trying to make you see, and it is because of  _that_  small fault that I will end your life, Souta. If you take a step toward me, I will kill you."

Souta blinked, but a small smirk formed onto his lips. "You can't kill me. I am of your blood, Kagome!" Souta shot forward, his arms outstretching, as if embracing her would erase the evil that filled her body—expel it from her very flesh. However, his motions were halted when suddenly a barrage of kunai came down upon him; each and every one entering his flesh and knocking him back a bit more. Blood dripped from the wounds, as he heard a feminine gasp, though he knew it was not from his sister, and he smiled a little. "I still love you… Kagome-nee-san…"

Sakura's mouth fell open, her eyes wide at the sight of the boy falling backwards. A small smile was on his lips, blood dripping from his mouth, but she was positive that he could not be saved; otherwise she would have gone against Kakashi's orders to help him. The amount of weapons sticking out of his body, the amount of blood that she was spilling, there was just no way that he couldn't be dead or near death. And, she just couldn't believe that the woman would kill her younger brother so quickly, and without remorse.

"Foolish little brother," Kagome snapped, turning her head the opposite direction. "Do you think I would not know the difference between killing a clone and the real thing?" The sound of the clone now behind her falling to pieces confirmed what she had already known, but the next sound caused her to stiffen.

Itachi had already stood; his eyes focused on the hiding place the boy had taken as his clone came out into the open. He blinked at the next declaration to hunt them and their evil, before the boy's chakra signature fled from the area. However, his eyes turned toward the shinobi now arriving, and allowed his eyes to narrow. Turning his attention to his partner, he gripped her shoulder a bit harder, and said, "We will retreat for now."

"Damn him. I could have had that brat by now if it wasn't for him," Kagome hissed. However, she nodded, her eyes narrowing at the sight of who lead the group of shinobi. When their eyes met, she noticed that the older woman was looking at her with a bit of worry, but she did not care for the feelings of her previous sensei. Besides, the woman had truly only trained her in the healing arts because of the money she'd been paid by the elders, she had no real reason to worry about her.

"Come," Itachi ordered. He disappeared, and knew the exact moment that his partner followed him away from the battlefield.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes, but allowed her head to lower as the shinobi at her side asked whether they should pursue or not. She nodded, however, and watched as they shot after the Akatsuki members with a slightly heavy heart. She'd noticed the way that she'd simply followed Itachi's orders, and she'd heard the other Higurashi members words, which gave her numerous amounts of possibilities to go off of. However, she turned her attention toward Kakashi, determined to get information out of him, hoping that there was some way to save her old student.

Sighing, and feeling old, Tsunade wondered,  _what reason do you have, Kagome? Why have you joined Akatsuki, thrusting aside all the beliefs you had as a child? How can I help you?_

Kakashi coughed a bit, allowing a medic-nin to take Naruto from him. "Tsunade-sama?" he said. Seeing her give her attention to him, he continued, "Naruto's information was correct. It would seem that Higurashi Kagome is rather close to her partner, though to what extent is unknown."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes a bit more, feeling the need for alcohol at that moment.  _Damn it. I knew I would have another reason to not trust that damn clan after that brat left the village. Damn it, I should have seen this coming._

_\--Fin_


End file.
